Yemen Fighting Kills More Than 140 Combatants as Houthis Push Toward Red Sea Chokepoint

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) – Fighting between Yemeni government forces and Iran-backed Houthi rebels in southwest Yemen killed more than 140 combatants between midday Saturday and early Sunday, military sources said, as the Houthis pressed an offensive toward the strategically vital Bab al-Mandab chokepoint.

Two military officials with the Saudi-backed government forces told AFP that 84 government troops were killed, most of them in missile attacks, while four Houthi military sources said 57 rebel fighters were killed during the same period.

The latest violence comes amid days of intense clashes over control of territory leading toward the Red Sea and marks some of the deadliest fighting in Yemen since a 2022 ceasefire between the two sides collapsed in July.

The Houthis launched their offensive on Thursday, seeking to cut off the government-held port city of Mokha, which has been under fire for weeks, and advance toward areas bordering the Bab al-Mandab, a strategic waterway at the southern entrance to the Red Sea.

According to an AFP tally based on military and medical sources from both sides, more than 300 combatants and civilians have been killed since the Houthi assault began on Thursday.

One military official with the internationally recognized government, which is based in Aden, said the fighting had subsided in the early hours of Sunday.

Government forces were able to establish positions north of Hays after advancing in the area, the official said, referring to a frontline district less than 30 kilometers inland from the Red Sea coast.

However, the official added that Houthi fighters had advanced west of Taiz, south of Hays, as they continued their push toward the Bab al-Mandab.

The strategic importance of the Bab al-Mandab has increased following Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz to commercial shipping, making the waterway an increasingly important transit route for oil exports from Saudi Arabia, the world's largest crude exporter.

A fragile truce between the Houthis and Yemen's government collapsed in July after the rebels welcomed an Iranian aircraft to the capital, Sanaa, triggering a new wave of attacks and escalating tensions.

The renewed fighting between the Iran-backed Houthis and government forces supported by Saudi Arabia, a key US ally, also signals the emergence of another front in the wider Middle East conflict that began in late February with US-Israeli strikes on Iran.

The Houthis have also announced a maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia and have begun targeting Saudi ships and territory, raising fears that the conflict could further threaten regional shipping routes and energy supplies.